kygobbler wrote:This story also reminds me something that has always confussed me. On fish you have two limits, you have the creel limit and possession limit. The possession limit is always double of the creel. Does the possession limit mean that is all you can have in your freezer? Or lets say there are 3 guys in a boat and the creel limit is 30 and the possession limit is 60 does that mean that the guys can not catch over 60 fish instead of 90?

This has always confused me and no one has ever gave me the explantion because Ive heard it both ways. Maybe one of you guys can explain this to me.

I don't think anyone answered your question.

FWIW a lot of small game has possession limits too.

In most states that I know of possession limit means the total number you can have at one time anywhere. With you while on a hunt, in your cabin, or in your freezer at home. I have heard of one state, Idaho, that a guy said possession limit did not apply once you got back home and had the game or fish in your freezer. I have not confirmed that and I have my doubts.

In your example of the 3 guys in the boat with a daily limit of 30 and possession limit of 60...Each man can catch 30 fish in one day and then he must stop keeping fish. They can each keep a total of 60 fish if they fish more than 1 day, so 3 guys could have 180 fish total for their combined possession limit as long as they fish multiple days. However in most states each guy has to catch his own fish.

As for small game lets take pheasant. In Colo the daily limit is 3 and possession limit is 3 tines the daily limit so thats 9 pheasants you can keep on hand. In Kansas the daily limit on pheasants is 4 and the possession limit is 4 times the daily so you can have 16 pheasants in your freezer.

Now lets just throw a wrench in all this just for fun...eh? :D For some reason gallinules (rails and coots) have the possession limit the same as the daily limit in many states. In Colo you can shoot 25 rails a day but only have 25 in possession. They are a migratory bird and are federally regulated so maybe that has something to do with it.

Brenton Enos, had more than 200 bluegill over his possession limit at his residence. This was on top of the meat taken from the six illegally harvested turkeys.The Trempealeau County Circuit Court judge agreed and on Jan. 22 accepted the no contest pleas from Enos, 63, of Eleva, to the charges of possessing 76 percent or more over the legal limit of fish and for possession of untagged turkeys. Enos was fined about $1,000 for the violations. One firearm was confiscated along with the fish and turkeys. Also, the court revoked Enos’ hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for three years.

Does the punishment fit the crime in this case?Since he was in my stomping grounds, I might be biased thinking it should have been more severe.

No the punishment does not fit the crime, I was raised and taught eat what you shoot and hunt by the law. I am currently a mentor for a new hunter in his mid 20's that never had the great life growing up a youngster hunting,trapping, and fishing. I have answered many questions why not this and why not that. I can remember growing up in Ohio and deer hunting and never seeing a deer in three years of hunting, and likewise with turkey hunting. So to all the people who followed the law hunting we now have a great game population and enjoy great hunting in Ohio. I think the department of Natural Resources should be allowed to govern the courts for these wildlife offences so poachers will face a person who cares about these crimes and maybe lay down some punishments to make a statement and maybe these people will stop poaching. 76 % over legal limit give me a break how about a 10 year loss of all hunting and fishing privlages plus $100.00 per fish and $1000.00 per turkey, then if you are caught hunting or fishing while there rights are suspended then take them for life. I would maybe listen with a little different tone if the guy had 7 hungry kids at home but at his age I would say he has done this many times before

Brenton Enos, had more than 200 bluegill over his possession limit at his residence. This was on top of the meat taken from the six illegally harvested turkeys.The Trempealeau County Circuit Court judge agreed and on Jan. 22 accepted the no contest pleas from Enos, 63, of Eleva, to the charges of possessing 76 percent or more over the legal limit of fish and for possession of untagged turkeys. Enos was fined about $1,000 for the violations. One firearm was confiscated along with the fish and turkeys. Also, the court revoked Enos’ hunting, fishing and trapping privileges for three years.

Does the punishment fit the crime in this case?Since he was in my stomping grounds, I might be biased thinking it should have been more severe.

No the punishment does not fit the crime, I was raised and taught eat what you shoot and hunt by the law. I am currently a mentor for a new hunter in his mid 20's that never had the great life growing up a youngster hunting,trapping, and fishing. I have answered many questions why not this and why not that. I can remember growing up in Ohio and deer hunting and never seeing a deer in three years of hunting, and likewise with turkey hunting. So to all the people who followed the law hunting we now have a great game population and enjoy great hunting in Ohio. I think the department of Natural Resources should be allowed to govern the courts for these wildlife offences so poachers will face a person who cares about these crimes and maybe lay down some punishments to make a statement and maybe these people will stop poaching. 76 % over legal limit give me a break how about a 10 year loss of all hunting and fishing privlages plus $100.00 per fish and $1000.00 per turkey, then if you are caught hunting or fishing while there rights are suspended then take them for life. I would maybe listen with a little different tone if the guy had 7 hungry kids at home but at his age I would say he has done this many times before

That is a GREAT first post! Unfortunately it is not the sportsmen that we need to convince but the lawmakers and well we all know how they are doing.

Welcome to the T&TH forum!

Dewey

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will." --Mahatma Gandhi

"Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat."--F. Scott Fitzgerald, American writer

When I was bought up hunting my grandfather made it a point, that you learned the old school way of hunting. YOU NEVER TOOK MORE THAN YOU NEEDED!!! With todays methods of hunting most everyone has forgotten that, most believe as long as you have a tag in your pocket, you can hunt. We've all pushed that to the limits at one time or another.I don't know the whole story about this guy, but in my book he got off easy. Who knows, he maybe only fishes in the winter and not in the summer, so he may have been keeping a few for summer meals? I dout it, but who knows? The untaged birds are another story, that's where he got off easy, it should of cost him his guns, the game and his hunting rights for 10 years and a fine for each bird, poaching is poaching!!! It's a different story if you have a big family to feed and your out of work with no income, to have a few extra in the freezer, provided they were taken legally, but poached game is something different. I'm not trying to make excuses for the guy having more that what he needed with his fish, but again I don't know his whole story of it? So I'd have to say he got off pretty easy.

WillowRidgeCalls wrote:Who knows, he maybe only fishes in the winter and not in the summer, so he may have been keeping a few for summer meals?

The poacher was fishing from a boat, he was out early in the AM and coming back in early. According to the story the CO found this odd and stopped to chat.

WillowRidgeCalls wrote:The untaged birds are another story, that's where he got off easy, it should of cost him his guns, the game and his hunting rights for 10 years and a fine for each bird, poaching is poaching!!!

Agreed. What is really bizarre is this guy was hunting in unit 1 which has thousands of leftover turkey tags spring and fall. What? He was too cheap too spend $10?! Clearly he is nothing but a thief in the night.

To me it's no problem If someone has a lot of legally taken game in the freezer and they consume it all (not those who try to give it all away just so they can kill more). Some hunters, like me, enjoy filling their freezers in order to eat only wild natural meats. I take great satisfaction killing my meat, processing it, cooking and eating it. mrs elk takes care of growing and harvesting the vegetables. Growing up I never thought I would see these days in WI when you can legally take as many deer and turkeys as you care to, as long as you buy the tags. There is no reason to cheat, steal or otherwise break the law. One day while hunting with a dozen deer and turkey tags in my pocket I realized it was legal to kill more deer & turkeys per day than squirrels, rabbits, grouse, pheasant, woodcock or any other small game. We are living in the "good old days of hunting right" now and jerks like this are trying to screw it all up.

later, charlie If you agree with me call it fact; if you disagree - call it my opinion. After all - we are talking turkey.

Some great posts on this. I agree he definetely got off easy. And as others said, it is one thing if they are killing stuff to feed their family, there I would probably come down easier, yet it is still breaking the law. The other thing is that there were so many tags available and he didn't want to bother buying any! That makes my blood boil. There are many times I could've shot an extra bird or 2, but never even crossed my mind. Even though some of the landowners around here would be very happy with me if I did. They think there are just way to many. But I guess I possess one thing a lot of the violaters do not, a conscience or you might say ethics.

It is a shame and makes me sad that there are so many out there that do not respect the hunting rights we have and take them for granted. Unfortunately the bad ones leave a bad taste in many nonhunters mouths and they generalize all of us into that catagory.